Experiment Stockholm

For that reason, Experiment Stockholm has experimented with different themes and questions for a little over a year. Together with various qualified and skilled people, we have investigated everything from the environment to the question of whether you can plan ahead for the unplanned. We have come to interesting conclusions. Certain parts from that work will be on display at the exhibition here at Färgfabriken, but also at other locations throughout Stockholm. The idea is that the project will leave its mark outside of Färgfabriken too. The Stockholm region is one of the fastest-growing areas in Europe, which creates pressure on the building of new housing, among other things. The cost of living is approaching absurd levels. Not enough new housing is being built and when it is, it’s the wrong kind. Large groups, such as young people and those moving to the city, cannot get in to the segregated property market. What’s being built today is virtually a “million program” for an economically-challenged middle class; standardised property sold through well-polished brochures and commercials.

Obviously, it’s not all about housing but also about a lot of other engaging issues. We live in a bigger world now compared to the 60s and 70s. Stockholm and Sweden today is multicultural, something that enriches and makes it attractive to live here. But fact remains; visible and invisible borders exist between the respective neighbourhoods – both ethnic and economic. Climate change will probably be the cause for the next big wave of immigration, and that in a near future. People will need to emigrate due to heat and a lack of water. That leads to issues regarding nature and ecology in relation to social structure; the wild forest, the farmed landscape, the parks and different biotopes. Can humans and our nature co-exist in some new way? With original thinking and an experimental approach, could these values create exciting and alternative environments for nature and for various people’s needs? And all this at places that will have to be exploited – perhaps not today, but tomorrow? Politics does have a responsibility. If it cannot formulate a direction or vision, the political discussion becomes static and uninspiring. That’s why Experiment Stockholm has claimed the task of vitalising the political debate and kicking the ball towards our decision-makers.

Färgfabriken is an art venue that uses artistic methods to highlight alternatives to how we can interpret our surrounding world. That’s why Färgfabriken has created an environment for art, research and architecture to meet. Over the course of the exhibition, Experiment Stockholm will host on-going experiments of different scales, where visitors are given the opportunity to add to the project.

On behalf of everyone working here at Färgfabriken I would like to thank all of the involved and all the people who have supported experimental thinking through knowledge and commitment!

Synergies, common interests and conflicts. How do we define “Stockholm” and how do the definitions influence our planning? In contemporary discussions on urbanism and sustainable growth the dense city centre is often used as the norm. But the dense city centre can only be sustained in relation to its surrounding countryside, and in a global context. Can we go beyond thinking in terms of inner city and suburbia? In what way are these areas dependent on each other? “Suburbia” is often talked about as a homogenous entity, yet it contains many different types, shapes and challenges. Could leafy residential areas with single-family villas be used as accelerators of change instead of being protected from any interventions? What are the unseen qualities of the countryside around Stockholm? 

Mental infrastructure, social nervs. The Stockholm region is segregated. How can physical planning and urbanism influence our ways of interacting? What if we consider infrastructure as a system to create meetings rather than a system to transport people and goods from point A to point B? How does digital evolution change our way of interacting in the urban space? Can planning remove social, mental and physical barriers in the Stockholm region.

Stockholm is building new urban regional cores and transportation hubs. What shape will they take; A windy commuter railway station or the equivalent of a Grand Central Station? Or rather, something we have never seen? How will one shift from one mode of transport to another? What happens if we think of humans instead of commuters? Each hub can be a place of transit, meetings and living. Can we find a balance between flow and permanence?

For Stockholm the central conflict of interest is between the urgent need to build the 300 000 new homes, and equally important need to create an urban region that continuously becomes more sustainable. How do we combine an expansive Stockholm with improved ecosystem services? Can we create a genuinely sustainable city if we include the global environmental footprint of the inhabitants of Stockholm? Are there other ways to construct the physical infrastructure? Is urban gardening efficient? Could it save us in a catastrophe or is it more an enjoyable thing to do in your leisure time? Should the individual or the society take most responsibility for the environment? What promises do concepts as “technical ecology” and “circular economy” hold?

There are many strategies and methods for participatory urban development but they do not always give results. Dialogue can prove to be an obstacle instead of being constructive. The demand for housing in the Stockholm region is enormous. There is a lot of frustration among those in need of housing as well as those wanting to build more. What is being built, and what is not being built? A very important question is whose voice is not being heard in the process? The whole exhibition is a part of this dialogue with the public audience, and a meeting-place for professionals and other stakeholders. Maybe we could try some new tools?

The city of Stockholm has embraced the idea of using informal methods in urban planning. This broad movement goes by many names that carry slightly different meanings: tactical urbanism, urban acupuncture or place-making. These methods are small-scale, cheap and temporary ways to change urban space and initially many of these methods were unsanctioned actions from activists and interest groups. These tendencies have many positive effects and are now used by planning authorities and real estate companies. Does this point to particular deficiencies in the traditional urban planning system? Andshould we be wary of an evolution where our public space, controlled by democratic structures, is taken over and divided by different communities and groups? Is this a hidden privatization of public space? Are we creating a cool hippie dream or a city ruled by clans?

What does sustainable urbanity mean in a broader sense? To be able to adapt to change we need to create a more resilient and varied urban structure with variation in scale and time frame. Can we explore the potential of small-scale construction in an urban context or in the dense suburbs? Can we imagine districts where some buildings are temporary, others more permanent? Which planning processes would allow for new actors to enter the market, e.g. more urban self-build processes? Can we find inspiration in Tokyo, Amsterdam and Tübingen, to create a vision for Stockholm? 

Most people agree that we need to create a transportation system that is both sustainable and promotes social and gender equality. How do we organize Stockholm’s streets when pedestrians and bicyclists are the norm? The city of Stockholm has decided on the Strategy of Accessibility that prioritizes the modes of transport in the following order, according to how resource efficient they are: pedestrians, bicyclists, public transport, goods and last of all, cars. Will all municipalities in the Stockholm region adapt to that strategy? And to what extent will they adapt their investment budgets and organizations to implement such a strategy? An intresting question is: What happens once the enthusiasm for bicycles? Can we find a mor effective interaction between different ways of transporting? 

We must learn how to build for change. We should consider our built environment as part of the surrounding ecosystem. The urban system must be able to adapt to both long-term change and to sudden external shocks like economic shifts, natural disasters, political unrest or a sudden influx of refugees. When building the city we need to include a long term, sustainable production of ecosystem services, social resilience and flexibility. Also, we do not know what the next technological breakthrough is; maybe we will not even see its effects until they are part of our everyday life.